Device administration system that administers device use status for each administrative unit, administration information change program, charge information processing program and charge information processing method

• US 20060048231A1
• Filed: 12/15/2004
• Published: 03/02/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/30/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Konica Minolta Business Technologies Incorporated (Konica Minolta Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Konica Minolta Business Technologies Incorporated (Konica Minolta Inc.)
• Inventors: Tanida, Mio
• Granted Patent: US 8,135,632 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/26
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/608 Secure printing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting

Abstract

The present invention is to provide a device administration system that prevents discrepancies in the use status information stored in the administration system when administrative units, such as users and/or departments, are excluded as subjects of administration, as well as an administration information change program to change the administration information in such administration system, a charge information processing program and a charge information processing method. This object is attained by providing a device administration system comprising: a device; an administration device that administers usage status information of the device for each administrative unit that is a user and/or a organization; and an administration information change device that changes the administrative unit; wherein in a case where the administration information change device excludes one of the administrative unit, the administration information change device makes changes so that the usage status information related to the administrative unit excluded by the administration information change device is not deleted from the administration device and is treated as a usage status information related to a different administrative unit.

Claims

1. A device administration system comprising:

a device;

an administration device that administers usage status information of the device for each administrative unit that is a user and/or a organization; and

an administration information change device that changes the administrative unit;

wherein in a case where the administration information change device excludes one of the administrative unit, the administration information change device makes changes so that the usage status information related to the administrative unit excluded by the administration information change device is not deleted from the administration device and is treated as a usage status information related to a different administrative unit.

2. The device administration system according to claim 1, wherein the different administrative unit is a prescribed administrative unit, and the usage status information related to the administrative unit excluded by the administration information is added to the usage status information related to the prescribed administrative unit.

3. The device administration system according to claim 1, further comprising:

an authentication device that performs authentication of the users and/or organizations,

wherein the administrative units are authenticated by the authentication device.

4. The device administration system according to claim 3, the different administrative unit is a public unit that does not require authentication by the authentication device.

5. The device administration system according to claim 1, wherein the device is an image forming apparatus and the usage status information is number of times by which image formation was carried out by the image forming apparatus.

6. An administration information change program that is executed by a computer when administrative unit are changed in a administration device that administers usage status information of the device for each administrative unit that is a user and/or a organization, the program comprising the steps of:

(a) retrieving from the administration device the usage status information for a plurality of the administrative units currently subjected to administration;

(b) designating at least one of the administrative units that are to be excluded as subjects of administration from among the plurality of administrative units retrieved by step (a); and

(c) making changes so that the usage status information related to at least one of the administrative units excluding by step (b) is not deleted from the administration device and is treated as a usage status information related to a different administrative unit.

7. The administration information change program according to claim 6, wherein the different administrative unit is a prescribed administration unit, and the usage status information related to the administrative unit excluding by step (b) is added to the usage status information related to the prescribed administrative unit.

8. The administration information change program according to claim 6, the different administrative unit is a public unit that does not require authentication.

9. A charge information processing program that is executed by a computer with regard to a device administration system comprising a device, an authentication unit that performs authentication of users and/of organizations in connection with using of the device based on authentication settings information, a first storage unit that stores first charge information in connection with the use by each users and/or organizations, and a second storage unit that stores second charge information in connection with the use by other users who are not users and/or organizations that are subjects of authentication, the program comprising the steps of:

(a) retrieving the authentication settings information and the first charge information from the authentication unit and the first storage unit;

(b) comparing the retrieved the authentication settings information retrieved by step (a) and the new authentication settings information,

(c) editing, based on the results of step (b), the first charge information in connection with use by a user and/or organization to be excluded from authentication as a writing data, and

(d) reflecting the writing data to the second charge information stored in the second storage unit or storing the writing data in a file.

10. The charge information processing program according to claim 9, wherein, in the step (c), in a case where a plurality of users and/or organizations are to be excluded from authentication, the writing data with which the first charge information in connection with use by each users and/or organization to be excluded from authentication was added is edited.

11. A charge information processing method executed in a device administration system comprising a device, an authentication unit that performs authentication of users and/of organizations in connection with using of the device based on authentication settings information, a first storage unit that stores first charge information in connection with the use by each users and/or organizations, and a second storage unit that stores second charge information in connection with the use by other users who are not users and/or organizations that are subjects of authentication, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) retrieving the authentication settings information and the first charge information from the authentication unit and the first storage unit;

(b) comparing the retrieved the authentication settings information retrieved by step (a) and the new authentication settings information,

(c) editing, based on the results of step (b), the first charge information in connection with use by a user and/or organization to be excluded from authentication as a writing data, and

(d) reflecting the writing data to the second charge information stored in the second storage unit or storing the writing data in a file.

12. The charge information processing method according to claim 11, wherein, in the step (c), in a case where a plurality of users and/or organizations are to be excluded from authentication, the writing data with which the first charge information in connection with use by each users and/or organization to be excluded from authentication was added is edited.